Ken Hudson had been looking for a way to quit working in other people's kitchens and start his own business while also finding more time for his family. He came up with a concept that met his goals while helping other families do the same.

Hudson founded 2 4 6 Meals to Go, opening on busy Nine Mile Road just a few weeks ago. He prepares your family's dinner so you don't have to, offering full meals ready to take home and eat.

"I wanted to work for myself," said Hudson, who started 2 4 6 after years in management with restaurants like Copeland's, Panera and Chili's. "And I know I would come home from a day shift, working 8 to 5 or 6, and as soon as I'd walk in the door, I'd hear, 'what's for dinner?' 'Man, I just got home!' So I know people need good food between 2 and 7 p.m. I enjoy cooking, so I wanted to do something I'm passionate about and solve a problem — because if you're an entrepreneur, and you don't solve a problem, you're toast."

Depending on when in the day you'd like to pick up your order, you can pick it up cold for quick reheating, or hot and ready to go. Either way, dinner is prepared, leaving more time to help the kids with homework, get to an evening function or to just relax and binge watch the hottest new TV series.

The "2 4 6" isn't one number but three, referring to the portion sizes Hudson prepares — that is, meals designed to satisfy two, four or six full-grown adults with healthy appetites. The consumer gets to save some time and isn't stuck buying large packages or expensive ingredients at the grocery store to make meals for just a couple of people.

"When I got married, I was really frustrated with that," Hudson said. "If you wanted to cook a stir fry for your wife and your one kid, or whatever, you've gotta buy rice, you've gotta buy soy sauce — because you're just starting out and you don't have a fully stocked pantry, you end up spending $20 on a $10 meal. And that always frustrated me, how everything was packaged for fives, or whatever. I didn't need that much, I wanted to buy just what I needed."

Owner Ken Hudson talks about people's time crunch and the high demand for prepared home cooked meals for single people and families at 2 4 6 Meals to Go on West Nine Mile Road in Pensacola on Monday, May 15, 2017. Gregg Pachkowski/gregg@pnj.com

Enchiladas ready to be heated (foreground) and already heated enchiladas ready for customers at 2 4 6 Meals to Go on West Nine Mile Road in Pensacola on Monday, May 15, 2017. Gregg Pachkowski/gregg@pnj.com

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Hudson spends the day prepping food, and opens the store for pickup from 2 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Later evenings and weekends are set aside for his family.

"If you pick up your meal from 2 to 4 p.m., you pick it up cold," Hudson explained. "So I'm like Blue Apron or Plated, but you're not dealing with raw product, so you're cutting down on preparation. Most of my dishes are ready in about 15 to 20 minutes. (After 4 p.m.,) when people tell me they're coming, I heat their food up and move it into a steam cabinet. If they tell me they're coming at 5:15, their stuff is going in the steam cabinet at 5:05, and when they walk in, whatever they ordered, I've got it ready and they're out the door in just a couple of minutes."

Each day, he offers a selection of three entrees — typically, one American, one Mexican and one Italian — each with accompanying side items.

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Owner Ken Hudson, right, bags a meal for new customer Debra Nelson at 2 4 6 Meals to Go on West Nine Mile Road in Pensacola on Monday, May 15, 2017.(Photo: Gregg Pachkowski/gregg@pnj.com)

"If you come to me, and your kid likes Mexican but they don't like Italian, they can have their Mexican and you can have your Italian," he said. "You can order two different cuisines without a penalty. Mexican dishes come with rice and beans, American dishes come with veggies or mashed potatoes, depending on what I'm serving. And Italian dishes come with bread, but they're loaded with pasta."

Salads, beverages and desserts also are available for purchase. Diners can order online as little as 30 minutes in advance, though the idea is to get the orders in earlier; indeed, you can even order days in advance.

"I'm set up so that you can order up to a month in advance," Hudson said. I need about 30 minutes to put different orders together, but the online process is pretty easy. You can come in or call, if you want, too."

When you get home, you eat off your own plates and silverware, just as if you'd made it at home. Hudson said the reaction he's received from diners so far has been fantastic, including rave reviews on Facebook.

"They love it," he said. "I make Alfredo from scratch, I make red sauce from scratch, I make mashed potatoes from scratch, and they can tell that it's fresh. I give you two full, adult-sized portions per order. I want two grown guys to be able to sit down and eat this and be happy; that's my philosophy."

While he was speaking, Debra Nelson popped into 2 4 6 to pick up her first order. Hudson walked her through the reheating instructions for her Italian order, which she said she was eager to try after hearing good word of mouth.

"I originally saw a Facebook post from my sister-in-law," Nelson said. "When I saw that (Hudson's) last name was the same as my maiden name, I wanted to research it, and I realized he had the same name as my brother. So I got interested and explored what he was doing here. I'm excited to try this food."

Nelson is single, and said she liked the idea of picking up portions for two and getting more than one meal out of her purchase.

"Going to a restaurant by myself is not always the most comfortable thing," she said. "I figured this way, I'll have dinner at home tonight and tomorrow night. You know, it's just me, and you can't really buy (ingredients) for one person, especially when you want to get all the ingredients to make a marinara or a pasta sauce."